Saturday Song: Harry Chapin, "Taxi"

Was this your first experience of Harry Chapin's wonderful songs? It was for me. I felt deeply moved by the story of two old friends meeting by chance one rainy night. The song taught me that life doesn't always work out the way we dreamt.

Hear Harry Chapin's "Taxi" here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs4j8YQwst8

When I first heard this song in the spring of 1972, I felt determined that I was going to be a television repair man. In spite of my poor vision, I felt convinced I could earn my living fixing electronics. And all the adults telling me I couldn't do such a job just made me more determined to prove them wrong.

After considerable arguing with the electronics class teacher, I enrolled and did well on the theory. The practical aspect was another matter. Though I tried hard to reconcile the schematic diagrams with the radios and other electronic gadgets, I failed miserably.

In December of 1974, the teacher gave me the bad news that I couldn't continue in his class. Televisions had extremely high voltages in them and he feared I'd get electrocuted.

Instead of fixing people's TVs, I'm a writer. I never drempt I'd be one either. And as for TV repair, nobody fixes electronics anymore.

Romans 11:33 (KJV) says, "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!" All I can say to that is "Amen!"

So, what are your memories of this song? Did you become what you'd hoped to be as an adult? Please leave me a comment in the box below. And if you don't feel like it, have a nice weekend anyway.

My next post will be about how some people mistreat folks who suffer tragedies. Hang in for that one.

WHAT'S IN AN LCD MONITOR?

Ever since 2008 when I bought my first LCD monitor, I wondered what was inside it. I secretly hoped it would die on me soon so I could open it up. My wish came true back in August of 2013.

When I opened the monitor, I found several sheets of frosted plastic behind the plastic panel containing the LCD pixels. Then I found a rectangle of Plexiglas. At the bottom and top of it were a set of two miniature fluorescent tubes. These were what lit up the screen. I could tell they were fluorescent tubes because they glowed when held near the Lightning Ball gadget that creates static electricity.

Behind the rectangle of Plexiglas was a white sheet of plastic. I believe this and the frosted sheets reflected and defused the light so the screen would look evenly lit. This arrangement amazed me. I had assumed that all monitors were back-lit with LEDs. In fact, most are lit differently.

I also found the circuit board which directed the signals from the computer's video card to each pixel on the screen. Since it had no reusable parts, I tossed it out. I kept the plastic sheets since they might be useful for something someday.

I kept the blue power indicator LED since it can work without any other electronic part. With a nickel-sized battery from my security system's door sensor, I can make it light up. I've made simple night lights from these discarded LEDs since they consume so little power. This helps me get more life out of old cells.

About a month ago, I bought a new monitor which is back-lit by LEDs. I'm sure that taking it apart a few years from now will be as interesting as when I took apart the old monitor. I might even be able to make an emergency light out of the panel. Since I plan to do that with the scanning light from a dead print scanner, I can try that experiment at some future date.

Science and electronics have been favourite topics of mine since childhood. I mention my passion for discovery in Deliverance from Jericho: Six Years in a Blind School and How I was Razed: A Journey from Cultism to Christianity. The latter e-book and paperback can be purchased from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Virtual Bookworm Publishers.

HOW I MADE LIME GREEN FIRE

In my books and blogs, I've often mentioned my adoration for science and electronics. As a child, I loved taking old radios and TVs apart. Whenever I could, I'd ask adults for any old radio or TV they didn't want anymore. While at home during summer vacation, I found a few TV chasses behind a repair company and took them home.

I had hours of fun dismantling those junkers. While doing so, I discovered many electronic parts that I hadn't seen before. Being inquisitive, I took some of those apart to find out what they contained.

One of the parts I dismantled was a capacitor. It consisted of a coil of metal foil with paper in between. I learned later that these capacitors store and discharge electricity quickly. Back in 1971, I didn't know that.

Along with that subject, I've also written about my love of fire. The furnace fascinated me since I could light materials in it and watch them burn. While examining the paper from the capacitor, I decided to see what would happen if I burned it. To my astonishment, the fire was a beautiful lime green colour. Whatever chemicals the manufacturer used to coat the paper obviously made the flame turn green.

When I received a chemistry set for my birthday the following year, I learned that some substances burn with different coloured flames. Using my mom's gas stove, I tested quite a few chemicals to see what colour they made in the flame.

Such shenanigans wouldn't be allowed today. Our society has become so litigious that any accidental injury would fuel a lawsuit. Children, as far as I know, aren't allowed to do such dangerous things as burn chemically-treated paper in the furnace or take apart electronic devices which have sharp edges inside. Much of the excitement my generation of experimenters is lost as a result.

Speaking of my childhood, I wrote a book called Deliverance from Jericho: Six Years in a Blind School. It and my debut memoir are at the Bruce Atchison's books page. I also recently published How I Was Razed: A Journey from Cultism to Christianity. Please check it out at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Virtual Bookworm Publishers.